Foundation Could Be Linked To Josiah Henson

NORTH BETHESDA, Md. (AP) -- Archaeologists have discovered a foundation in the Maryland suburbs of Washington that may be linked to Josiah Henson, a former slave whose autobiography inspired the novel "Uncle Tom's Cabin."

The Baltimore Sun reports that a team of archaeologists with the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission and the PBS program "Time Team America" began exploring the Josiah Henson Special Park on Monday.

The team found evidence of a buried foundation that may have existed in the late 1700s and early 1800s. That's when Henson worked on the north Bethesda site for landowner Isaac Riley.

Montgomery County bought the historic site from private owners in 2006, and since then, fact-finding efforts have increased. Researchers believe the newly discovered foundation was part of a barn or blacksmith.

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